Auricular confessionary instrument.



PATENTED szEPT.l 22, 1903.,

` WMH. GREIS. AURICULAR GONFESSIONARY INSTRUMENT. APPLIUATION Hum un. 3 1, 190s.

TH: Nonms P N0 MODEL.

Y No. 739,541.

WITNESSESf UNITED STATEs Patented September 22, 1903.

vPATENT GFFICE.

AURICULAR C ONFESSIQNARY INSTRUMENT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 739,541, dated September 22, 1903.

Application iiled January 31, 1903. Serial No. 141,250. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern,.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. GREIs, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Syracuse, in the county of Onondaga, in the State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Auricular Confessionary Instruments, of which the following, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to devices 'designed to be employed in confessionals required of members of the Roman Catholic Church.

The object of the invention is to providea simple, convenient, and efficient instrument for transmitting communications carried under a low tone of voice between the confesser and confessional orpriest and which instrument shall be of sanitary character, so as to obviate the liability of subjecting the person at one end of the instrument to inhaling the breath of the person speaking into the opposite end of said instrument. To attain the said object, the instrument consists in the novel auricular confessionary instrument hereinafter described, and set forth in the claims.

In the annexed drawings, Figure l is a transverse sectional view of a partition which separates the Confessor fromY the confessionalist, to which partition my aforesaid instrument is connected. Fig. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal section of said instrument. Fig. 3 illustrates modifications of my'invention', and Fig. 4. is a further enlarged longitudinal section of the transmitting-tube and parts adjacent thereto. Y

Similar letters of reference indicate correspending parts.

P represents a partition which separates the confesser from the' confessionalist or priest. Transversely through said partition extends the transmitting-tube, which is composed of ltwo united end sections a a', sustained in proper position by means of collars h b, attached to opposite sides of the protruding ends of the partition P and embracing the transmitting-tube and preferably screwthreaded and engaging threaded portions of the tube-sections. The interior of the said tube is spanned by a diaphragm c, which may be of any suitable material to modify the tone in transmission and is preferably re- -movable therefrom to permit cleansing or repairing or renewal thereof. For this purpose I form the exterior of one end section of said tube of a smaller diameter than the opposite end section thereof and with a shoulder d at the junction of said end sections. The diaphragm cis seated on the said shoulder and retained thereon by a removable end section a', inserted into the enlarged portion of the end section ct and pressing the diaphragm onto the shoulder d.

ee represent the communicating tubes, which project from opposite sides of the partition and may be formed integral with the tube-sections a a', by which they are united in the partition P, as illustrated in Fig. 4. of the drawings. y I do not, however, limit myself to this specific construction, inasmuch as it is susceptible of modifications, as shown in Fig. 3 ofthe drawings, in which the attached ends of the communicating tubes e c are each formed with a tubular branch f, into which is inserted a receiving-tube h, the free end of which is suitably shaped to allow it to be properly applied to thev ear of the person for receiving the communication spoken into the tube e at the opposite side of the partition P.-

The diaphragm c in either case prevents the breath of the speaker from passing to the person receiving the communication.

C represents a glass panel in the partition P.

What I claim as my invention is- 1. The combination with the partition, of communicating tubes projecting from opposite sides of said partition and united therein, and a diaphragm secured in said tubes at the junction thereof as set forth.

2. `The combination with the partition, of a transmitting-tube composed of two end sections extending through the partition and united therein, a diaphragm secured in said tube at the junction of its sections, and com municating tubes extending from the ends of the transmitting-tube and projecting from opposite sides of the partition as set forth. WILLIAM H. GREIS. Witnesses:

J. J. LAAss, G, VAN VoRsT. 

